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Going back to my panorama I guess 8 x 181cms could work but if it were properly framed then it would still be around 2 metres in length ideally I think making it just a bit higher than 8cms would be better but then it might no work as one image. Perhaps the answer would be to see if I can workout how to print out a small section of it at that height and see if I’m happy with that, then I might consider getting someone to print it.

@@inyathi Rob, Yes, I agree that it could do with my height. If you're seriously considering a print, ask around the commercial printers. Some might prefer a file at say 720 ppi, then the pano would be 2.5 feet wide and also find out their file preferences. Some might be happy with a .jpg others will want a .tiff and perhaps 16 bit or in different colour spaces.

Then of course it all comes down to cost.

Even so It's a fabulous sight when you get to see massive flocks/herds different species.

I´ll find it strange that the most common one is the most endangered one...

That's because the status is based on more than just the total number of animals. It also accounts for population trends. Some animals have a naturally small distribution, island endemics for example, so will never reach really high population numbers. If for example the population of a rail on some island has been stable over the last 3 decades, hovering around 500 animals, and another bird's population has dwindled in the same period from 500,000 to 100,000, which one is more trouble? Usually the periods are measured in generation times of the particular species.

There's a similar thing with those cranes (grey crowned and wattled, I don't know too much about the black-necked). The grey crowned is widespread but has undergone considerable population declines, while the wattled crane has a more restrictred distribution and the population trends isn't all that well known. In some areas they seem to be doing well (Okavango, Liuwa), from others virtually nothing is known, but also new populations are discovered (Zambezi delta).

What worries me most about cranes in Africa is the increase in the use of pesticides and insecticides in areas where cranes are foraging and breeding. This might have a big impact on hatching rates. But as cranes tend to live long and only raise 1-2 chicks each time they breed it might take time for these effects to become noticeable but once they do it's already too late as the old breeding adults die, and are not being replaced by new breeding adults. Much like some of the black cockatoos in Australia.

~ The Yangtze River enters the East China Sea slightly northeast of Shanghai. A long, rectangular island, Chongmingdao, 崇明岛, is at the river mouth, at the eastern end of which is Dongtan Nature Reserve.

While visiting there, this Ardea cinerea, Grey Heron, flew past, its powerful wingbeats carrying it through the downpour. It's reassuring that such a magnificent bird lives not far from a major urban area.